Ninth Annual Hunter Homeless Connect Day

BY MICHAEL COOK

The ninth annual Hunter Homeless Connect Day at the Newcastle Basketball Stadium is on today with a number of service providers in attendance.

The number of homeless people in the Hunter is on the rise so an event such as the Homeless Connect Day will hope to combat this through providing information and assistance.

Hunter Homeless Connect coordinator Michelle Faithfull says the day provides a chance for ideas to be shared about homelessness in the community.

Services at the day include health screening and information, sports and recreation, legal, financial and family assistance as well as housing and accommodation support.

Clothes for the Hunter Homeless Connect Day

Free Mobile Laundry for Homeless in Newcastle

BY JARROD MELMETH

Newcastle could soon have a free mobile laundry service for the homeless by the end of the year if funding can be secured.

The project is run by 2016 Young Australians of the Year and Orange Sky Laundry founders Nic Marchesi and Lucas Patchett.

Each van costs $100,000 to build and are custom fitted with two commercial washing machines and two dryers which combined, do over 5.8 tonnes of laundry every week.

The vehicles are Australia's first free mobile laundry service for the homeless and has a fleet of 9 vehicles around Australia, one of which is stopping at Hamilton station today.

The stop is part of a five-day and 2000-kilometre journey from Brisbane to Melbourne in hopes of sourcing volunteers to help service a van in Newcastle.

One of the Orange Sky Laundries in action. Photo Courtesy of The Advertiser.